In a business context, a user typically searches for information in the context of doing something with the information. Rather than just being interested in the information itself, a user in a business context may seek information pertinent to one or more actions of a business process task. Additionally, work in a business context may focus more on the use of business objects, or data objects with a business purpose, rather than just information. Traditional search algorithms are typically inadequate at dealing with business objects, in terms of both targeting a search to the business objects, and providing the resources a user wants to perform work on the search results.
In addition to the search scenario, traditional work contexts tend to focus on the “task at hand.” While focusing on a particular task can provide some benefit, it can be restrictive in terms of the scope of what the user is trying to accomplish. Traditional applications and business objects fail to provide adequate mechanisms for offering options to a user that would allow the user to be more productive from within any given context.